Welcome
Why volunteer?
What can you do?
How to get involved
Hints & Tips

Welcome

Welcome to the University of
Plymouth Studentsâ&#x20AC;&#x2122; Unionâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s
Guide to Volunteering, and
thank you for finding out more
about volunteering with us.
Volunteering gives students
valuable skills, knowledge
and practical experience that
cannot be achieved from
academic studies alone and
therefore gives a more rounded
student experience, valuable
transferable skills and the
opportunity to interact with the
community in which they live.
It will also give you the chance
to do something completely
different and challenging! We
aim to provide students with
the opportunity to develop
key transferable skills through
experience, training and
accreditation.

This guide is designed to give
you an overview of how to get
involved in volunteering here at
UPSU, to let you know where to
find out more information, and
to outline some of the key things
you need to know to get the
best out of your volunteering.
Check out the volunteer pages
at www.upsu.com for the full
Volunteer Policy, and lots of
other useful info, contacts and
advice.
We look forward to meeting you
soon!
The Volunteer
Department Team

Why volunteer?
As a volunteer you will have
the opportunity to make a
real difference to your local
community. During the course
of your volunteering, you will
also get:

* The chance to gain work

*To meet new people,

*The opportunity to develop

*The chance to find out more

experience within a supportive
and positive environment.

interests and learn new skills
through regular access to
training, informal learning
activities and supervision.

You may have a very clear
idea of the area that you wish
to work in already, however
not everyone is sure about the
area in which they would like
to volunteer as they do not
know what is on offer in the
local community for example,
and others may be interested
in several different activities
and want to gain experience in
different areas.
If you are unsure about what
you would like to do, don’t
worry. We have information on
a vast range of activities and
projects; from one-off events,
those that run twice a term,
to the more time intensive
opportunities that require a
commitment of three hours a
week or more. We are happy to
arrange for you to ‘try out’ and
visit several projects in order to
find the right opportunity.

Here are a few examples of
the types of things
you can do:
Assisting with English classes
for refugees and asylum
seekers. Conservation work
and gardening activities at
community projects. Help
with after-school arts clubs or
football sessions. Running dj
workshops or media projects
at Youth Clubs. Assisting with
the designing and running
of events for local charities.
Serving lunches and assisting
with exercise classes for older
members of the community.
Science projects within schools
or with the open air laboratories
group. Being an online mentor
for anti-bullying programmes.
Taking part in sports and
cultural events for young people
across Devon and Cornwall as
part of the RELAYS project….
and many more!

How to get involved?
in 7 easy steps

1 Check out this Guide and the
volunteer pages on www.upsu.
com for information on projects
and volunteering opportunities,
and the full Volunteer Policy and
guidelines.

2 Join the UPSU Volunteers

facebook fan page at
facebook.com/UPSUVolunteers
Follow us on Twitter
twitter.com/UPSUVolunteers

3 Complete the Volunteer

Enrolment form. This can be
picked up from the Volunteer
Department which is situated
in the Hive in the Studentsâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;
Union, or downloaded from the
volunteering pages on www.
upsu.com/volunteering. If you
require assistance with the
completing of the form contact
the Volunteer Office.

4 Once we have your form

you will be invited to come
and meet with a staff member
to discuss your interests and
to receive information on
opportunities and activities.

5 Sign up for any relevant

training. Visit the training
section on the volunteer pages
for all the info.

6 Visit your chosen projects
and activities and start
volunteering!

7 Keep in touch and tell us
how you are getting on.

Hints & Tips
for successful volunteering
We want you to have the best
possible experience as a
volunteer. Use this section as a
reference throughout your time
volunteering.

Choice
You can use the volunteer
pages on www.upsu.com,
our facebook page or the
regular surgery times with a
Volunteer Co-ordinator to help
you chose an opportunity. It is
your right to make this choice,
you should remember that a
few opportunities may have
restrictions for example on
times, age or commitment.
You also have the right to
change projects or withdraw
from volunteering giving the
appropriate notice. Please
think carefully about the
commitment you are able to
make (remembering going
home for weekends, friends,
academic work and exams
etc) and please do not make a
commitment you are unable to
complete.

Your rights and
responsibilities
As a volunteer you have rights
and responsibilities and these
will be explained to you at your
induction. They are designed
to give you a voice, and to
ensure that your volunteering
is of real benefit to yourself
and the community. They also
highlight that as a volunteer
with UPSU you are acting as
an ambassador for us and
as such should behave in an
appropriate manner. All the
rights and responsibilities are
on the volunteer pages at www.
upsu.com or available from the
Volunteer Department.

Hints & Tips
continued

Settling In
Whether you are new to
volunteering or a dab-hand, you
may like to ask for a â&#x20AC;&#x2DC;settlinginâ&#x20AC;&#x2122; period. This could involve
visiting the project a few times
before you start, shadowing
another volunteer or having a
trial period before you commit
to longer term involvement.
This process will help build your
confidence, enable you to find
out more about the organisation
and get to know others before
you start.

Feedback
& Ideas
We value your thoughts,
feelings, ideas and experiences!
If you have any comments
or criticisms about any of the
projects please let us know so
we can work towards improving
our service to you.
.

Reliability
Volunteers are highly valued by
organisations and contribute
significantly to their mission and
work. It is therefore essential
that they are able to rely on you.
Please let your organisation/
project know if you are unable
to attend and inform them of
any changes of circumstances
that will affect your volunteering.

Ongoing
support
All volunteers will have the
UPSU Volunteer Department
as their main contact and are
there to support you throughout
the year. In addition to this
you will have the volunteer
co-ordinator or project leader
for the area in which you
volunteer. The co-ordinators/
project leaders will support all
volunteers and will have regular
meetings with volunteers to
discuss any problems or issues
that may arise. You can ask
for a meeting with a member
of the Volunteer Department
at anytime throughout the
academic year and can make
the arrangements in person, via
email or by phone.

Safety
All volunteers are covered by
our insurance policy whilst
volunteering with activities
facilitated by UPSU. In addition
to this, all the community groups
that UPSU works with have a
valid insurance policy and we
ensure that you will volunteer
in conditions that are safe and
healthy.

Hints
& Tips
continued

Communication

Future Plans

Please let us know of
any problems within your
volunteering activity and we
will endeavour to support you
to overcome them. You should
also meet and talk regularly
with the person responsible for
you at your project. This will
help chart your progress and
development and will help to
avoid any hiccups.

Volunteering is a great way to
develop skills which will make
you more employable. Think
carefully about your strengths
and weaknesses â&#x20AC;&#x201C; what do you
hope to develop or learn? How
will you do this? UPSU has
a dedicated Training Advisor
who develops and delivers a
programme of training courses
and activities throughout
the academic year, and can
advise you on informal learning
opportunities available through
the University. If you have any
specific training needs we can
assist with organising this for
you.

Socials
Socials are a great way to keep
in touch with volunteers and
to meet new people on other
projects, and to celebrate your
achievements. ViP run a series
of socials throughout the year.

Volunteering can be a good way
to test our career choices â&#x20AC;&#x201C; the
Volunteer Department can tell
you more about this. UPSU
will also provide you with a
reference if you require one,
or will act as a referee, for a
period of 12 months after you
either finish your volunteering
activities, or graduate.

Do something
more
Some of the most successful
community volunteering is
led entirely by students, all is
takes is an ideaâ&#x20AC;Ś.Volunteer
in Plymouth (ViP) is the UPSU
volunteering society and is run
by a student committee. You
work within a team so itâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s a
great way to meet new people
and get all the help and support
you need.

Being part of the committee
provides students with the
opportunity to develop skills
such as leadership, project
planning, teamwork skills and
the Volunteer Project Coordinator works with them to
enable the appropriate training
to be available and assist with
their developments.
So if you have an idea that
you would like to become a
reality, or would like to get
involved in the Committee then
please contact the Volunteer
Department.

www.upsu.com
volunteer@su.plymouth.ac.uk
facebook.com/UPSUVolunteers
twitter.com/UPSUVolunteers
Visit us:
Volunteer Office is located
in the Hive in the Studentsâ&#x20AC;&#x2122; Union